World Scrabble Championship Explained

World Scrabble Championship
Sport:Scrabble
Founded:1991
Champion:Nigel Richards (5th title)
Champ Season:2019
Sponsor:Mattel, MSA

The World Scrabble Championship (WSC) is played to determine the world champion in competitive English-language Scrabble. It was held in every odd year from 1991 to 2013; from 2013 onwards, it became an annual event.

The most successful player in world championship history is Nigel Richards from New Zealand, who won a record five titles between 2007 and 2019.

History

Sponsorship of the World Scrabble Championship (WSC) formerly alternated between Hasbro and Mattel, the North American and global owners of the Scrabble trademark, respectively. However, after Hasbro declined to sponsor WSC 2005, Mattel has organized and sponsored all championships. Mind Sports International (MSI) began sponsoring the event in 2013 after successfully organizing their own major Scrabble tournament in Prague in 2012. As of 2018, it has been sponsored by Mindsports Academy.

On May 17, 2013, Mattel announced[1] that the event would be renamed the Scrabble Champions Tournament, and the tournament would be held annually as part of Mind Sports International's Prague Mind Sports Festival. MSI introduced a 'Last Chance Qualifier' tournament, giving players a last opportunity to qualify for 5 places in the main event if they failed to achieve a place on their national team. A four-way knockout stage was introduced for the top four finishers, which consisted of a best-of-3 semi-final followed by a best-of-5 final. Nigel Richards became World Champion here, making him the first player to defend his world title.

In 2014 the Scrabble Champions Tournament continued in London, but it became an open event, with all players invited to compete. A quarter-final stage was added, meaning that the top 8 progressed to the knockout stages. Craig Beevers won the event, making him the first British World Scrabble Champion since Mark Nyman in 1993.

In 2015, following cancellation of the SCT, Mattel and MSI agreed to allow WESPA to organize the 2015 WESPA Championship (WESPAC). It was held in Perth, Australia and followed the invitational format of pre-MSI WSC events. 130 players qualified to play. Wellington Jighere of Nigeria emerged as WESPA Champion after beating Lewis Mackay 4–0 in the final.

In 2016, the tournament was split into two divisions based on players' rankings. MSI also hosted world championships in other languages, including French, German, Spanish and Catalan, alongside the French Duplicate Championship.

The 2017 MSI World Championships followed the same format as the 2016 event. This was won by Australian David Eldar.

The 2018 World Scrabble Championship was organised by Mindsports Academy. The main event was held in Torquay, Devon, but the best-of-5 final was held in London to celebrate the game's 70th anniversary. The event was won by Nigel Richards.

In 2019 Nigel Richards went on to defend his title (and win his fifth championship) against David Eldar at the Riviera International Centre in Torquay.

After 2019, unofficial world championships are held at WESPAC because WESPA has been denied permission from Mattel and/or Hasbro to be called an official world championship.

List of finals

YearWinnerRunner-upLocationEntrantsWinner's prizeTotal prize poolSponsor
1991 Peter Morris Brian CappellettoLondon, United Kingdom48Spears
1993 Mark Nyman Joel WapnickPlaza Hotel, New York City, United States64Hasbro
1995 David Boys Joel ShermanPark Lane Hotel, Piccadilly, London, United Kingdom64Mattel
1997 Joel Sherman Matt GrahamMayflower Hotel, Washington, D.C., United States80[2] Hasbro
1999 Joel Wapnick Mark NymanCarlton Crest Hotel, Melbourne, Australia98Mattel
2001 Brian Cappelletto Joel WapnickVenetian Hotel, Las Vegas, United States88[3] Hasbro
2003 Panupol Sujjayakorn Pakorn NemitrmansukCorus Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia90[4] Mattel
2005 Adam Logan Pakorn NemitrmansukMarriott Regent's Park Hotel, London, United Kingdom102[5] Mattel
2007 Nigel Richards (1) Ganesh AsirvathamTaj President Hotel, Mumbai, India104[6] Mattel
2009 Pakorn Nemitrmansuk[7] Nigel Richards[8] Zon Regency Hotel, Johor Bahru, Malaysia[9] 108[10] Mattel
2011 Nigel Richards (2) Andrew FisherHilton Hotel, Warsaw, Poland[11] 106[12] Mattel
2013 Nigel Richards (3) Komol PanyasophonlertAndel's Hotel, Prague, Czech Republic110[13] Mattel, MSI
2014 Chris Lipe ExCeL Arena, London, United Kingdom108[14] Mattel, MSI
2015 Wellington Jighere[15] Lewis Mackay Gloucester Park, Perth, Australia130WESPA (1)
2016 Brett Smitheram Mark NymanGrand Palais, Lille, France72Mattel, MSI
2017 David Eldar Harshan LamabadusuriyaNottingham, United Kingdom77[16] Mattel, MSI
2018 Nigel Richards (4) Jesse DayTorquay (final in Westfield London), United Kingdom75[17] Mattel, MSA
2019 Nigel Richards (5) David EldarRiviera International Centre, Torquay, United Kingdom46$8,000 Mattel, MSA
2023 David Eldar Harshan LamabadusuriyaLas Vegas, United States134$10,000WESPA
From 1993 to 2023, New Zealand, represented by Nigel Richards with his 5 victories, is the most successful country participating in the World Scrabble Championship. This accounts for 27.8% of the total wins. The United Kingdom and Canada each secured 3 victories, placing them both in second place.[18]

See also

References

See main article: world championships.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Press Release . Forum.mindsportsinternational.com . 2014-02-23.
  2. Web site: John J. Chew III . WSC 1997 Prizes . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  3. Web site: 2001 World SCRABBLE® Championship . Scrabble-assoc.com . 2001-05-03 . 2014-02-23.
  4. Web site: Scrabble Masters . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  5. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2005 WSC Prizes . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  6. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2007 WSC Prizes . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  7. Web site: WSC 2009 Standings: Round 24. 2022-02-16. live.wscgames.com.
  8. Web site: John J. Chew III. WSC 2009: Finals. 2014-02-23. Live.wscgames.com.
  9. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2009 WSC Venue . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  10. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2009 WSC Prizes . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  11. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2011 WSC Venue . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  12. Web site: John J. Chew III . 2011 WSC Prizes . Wscgames.com . 2014-02-23.
  13. Web site: Prize Table . Event.poslfit.com . 2014-02-23.
  14. Web site: World SCRABBLE Championship - NASPAWiki.
  15. Web site: Nigeria celebrates Africa's first English-language Scrabble win . . 9 November 2015. . 9 November 2015.
  16. Web site: Obscure word propels Londoner to victory in world Scrabble championships . . 27 August 2017. www.telegraph.co.uk . . 28 August 2017 .
  17. News: Sulky word wins Scrabble championship . 30 October 2018 . BBC News . 29 October 2018.
  18. Web site: Percantage of World Scrabble Championship by Country (1993-2023) . 2024-08-01 . www.crosswordsolver.com.

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